People with Caring Responsibilities Working in the NSW Public Sector

More than one in ten members of the NSW community are carers. The national ABS Survey of Disability Ageing and Carers (SDAC) (2003) found that in NSW:

• 748,000 people are carers, representing 11% of the population
• 20% are primary carers
• Carers are in all age groups. However, primary carers are most likely to be 45 years of age and over
• 72% of primary carers are women
• of all primary carers, 91% were caring for a close family member, 40% of care for a partner, 29% for a child and 32% for other
• caring tends to be a long-term commitment. 33% of primary carers report that they have been caring for at least 10 years, and a further 26% for at least 5 years (national figures)
• over one half of primary carers provide at least 20 hours of care a week
• 36% of primary carers are employed, and of these, 54% are employed part time
• carers tend to have lower incomes than the rest of the population and more than half rely on government pensions and allowances as their principal source of income.

The NSW Carers Action Plan 2007-2012 outlines a whole of government policy commitment to recognising and supporting carers over the next 5 years. It includes strategies to increase the respect and recognition of carers, reach out to family members who may not see themselves as carers, improve service to carers and the people they care for, encourage agencies to view carers as partners in care and support carers to combine work and caring.